The Rangers are seeking a compensatory selection in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft for the loss of Alexei Cherepanov, The Post has learned.

Glen Sather raised the issue at the general managers’ meeting in Chicago two weeks ago, citing CBA Article 8.3 (b) that stipulates that compensatory picks be awarded to teams unable to sign first-round draft picks.

Sather is submitting that the Rangers should receive the 17th selection in the second round of June’s draft as compensation for losing Cherepanov, the 17th overall selection in the 2006 Draft who died in Russia on Oct. 13 while playing for Omsk.

“At this point, the league has taken no position on the Rangers’ request,” NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told The Post. “The matter is in front of the league’s general managers, who will address the subject at their next meeting in March.

“It’s possible that the language of the CBA would need to be amended to address situations such as this one. If that’s the case, then we would need to negotiate that with the Players’ Association.”

The Rangers, however, are arguing that the current language applies to this case and that amending the CBA is not necessary.

“The question is with the one parenthetical phrase in Article 8.3 (b) that refers compensation for an unsigned first-round draft pick who is ‘a again eligible for the Entry Draft or becomes an Unrestricted Free Agent a’,” Rangers assistant GM Cam Hope told The Post. “That language was inserted to clarify that a team would be owed a compensatory pick even if they were to re-draft that player or sign him as a free agent.

“It seems now as if that phrase is unintentionally precluding the deceased from being included as eligible for compensation. We understand that this is a sensitive issue, but with all due respect to Alexei’s family and his memory, he is technically eligible to be drafted again next year.

“We are not attempting to capitalize on a tragedy, but there would be no question regarding the Rangers’ right to a compensatory pick if Cherepanov had been revived and survived the incident and were on life support.

“If an unsigned player sustained a massive injury on or off the ice, the drafting team would get a compensatory pick,” Hope said. “We believe that the letter of the law applies in this case, but even if there is a disagreement on that, it’s clear that the spirit of the law applies.”

Hope would not speculate how the Rangers would react if the league ultimately denies their claim, but it is likely the team would file an expedited grievance to be heard and adjudicated prior to the draft that will be conducted in Montreal on June 26-27, 2009.